BEE-BEEP!

Aaahh, the nature trails at Blue Hole Park! The perfect place to go and...gab on your cell phone??? 

I had just started down my favorite trail the other day when I spotted The Roadrunner! I couldn't believe how long he stayed on the trail in front of me, letting me follow along snapping photos, as long as I didn't make too much noise or get too close.

I was creeping ever closer, about to get the perfect shot, when I heard it -- some moron with a shrill voice coming up behind me, yakking away on her cell phone. And off he shot into the woods, faster than you could say Be-beep. DOH!

So, I ask you, where are Wylie Coyote and his anvil when you really need them?

A MONUMENTAL FIRST

 
It just occurred to me that I never got around to sharing any pics from last weekend's Wimberley Arts Fest. As predicted, Sunday was a perfect day for it -- no rain, but cloudy enough to keep us from being hot and miserable. One thing I love most about this festival is that I always run into lots of my artsy friends there!

Outdoor Woman and her Weekend Guests

Hubby's favorite thing is the W.A.G. Rescue booth, which always has puppies for him to play with.

Although, his new favorite thing might just be this sno-cone truck...

which allows you to dispense your own toppings!

People come from all over to sell their arts and crafts.

Came very close to buying that ceramic lamp at the back of the booth above, but then I remembered what it will be like to have toddlers yanking on lamp cords.

Can't remember where I was, but I recently heard people talking about "Chef Somebody", who is thinking about re-opening the restaurant in Cypress Falls Event Center, where our daughter got married. Now I'm wondering if this guy below might be the fellow they were referring to...

So, you might be asking, what about this years trip to the Arts Fest made it so very "monumental"? Well, it was the first time ever that I actually bought a couple of Christmas presents months in advance, from artsy friend and neighbor Martha Gibson...

while my hubby bought absolutely nothing!

HAYS CITY SPECIALS

There are many reasons why we have fallen in love with the reincarnation of Hays City Store, which opened up about a year ago. Not the least of which is that, on those weekends when we just can't face the hordes of holiday revelers/Market Day shoppers in Wimberley, we can now drive about ten minutes in the opposite direction and be at Hays City! Then there are the yummy burgers, the fabulous brunch options on the weekends, and the weekly shrimp boils during the warmer months. Best of all, however, is that, when one grows weary of having the same ol' same ol', there is always a daily Chef's Special to pique one's interest. Things like this dish, which I tried on Monday:

You can see for yourself the crisp bits of prosciutto, the fresh asparagus, and the slightly smokey grilled shrimp and corn. But, hidden underneath, there is a bed of perfectly toothsome spinach pasta, dressed with the kind of tomato sauce where they probably just sauteed some minced garlic in olive oil, stirred in fresh cherry tomatoes and let them simmer until they erupted and their sweet juices were released, then finished it off with a dash of red pepper flakes and some freshly grated parmesan.

Oh. My. With daily specials like this, I don't see how I could ever grow tired of this place!

BACK TO SUDAN

Well, now that the Hill Country wedding is over and done with, I decided it was time I jumped back into journaling about their Sudanese wedding in my travel journal.

I get so immersed in these projects...

trying to remember everything that happened... the people I met...

and how it all made me feel...spending several weeks on each spread...

I'm beginning to wonder if I'll ever actually make it to the part about Barcelona, or if I'll just stay there in Sudan forever!
 

A TOUCH OF LAVENDER

In case you couldn't tell from the photos, Austin's and Areej's wedding had a lavender thing goin' on.  It was partially because the venue is, or was, some kind of lavender farm, although we didn't actually see any lavender in bloom. Mostly, however, it was because our Areej is passionate about all things purple.

Did I ever show you the dress I found for the wedding? Actually, I bought two. The first one was a rather stiff and formal, deep plum, silk-ish thing, found at Nordstrom's Rack. An "it'll do" kind of dress which was within my price range. But, as I was on my way from that store down to the book store, I spotted something in the window of a shop called Dress Barn, and I fell in love. (Hubby says I probably shouldn't tell people I found my dress in a barn.) Does this scream "spring at the lavender farm", or what?

I probably shouldn't tell you how little it cost, either. Suffice it to say, that little lace jacket I bought to wear over it? Well, that cost more than twice as much as the dress itself! Fortunately, I had no problem whatsoever returning the first dress I bought. What I love most about this outfit is that it also gave me an excuse to pull out some of my mom's beautiful old pearl jewelry, which almost never gets worn!

Speaking of lavender, check out these adorable party favors. The guests had one of each sitting on their eggplant-colored napkins.

A great recipe for using the edible lavender, to make Lavender Lemonade, is posted on their wedding page at The Knot, but for a more detailed version complete with photos, you might want to go directly to the source, Elise Bauer's lovely blog Simply Recipes.

There were lots of the gift bags left over, so I grabbed a couple of handfuls of each. I then planted several of the seed bombs in each of the planter boxes where I grow all of my herbs, on the balcony right outside my kitchen door. In fact, I just might have lavender to share, ere long, iffen those dang squirrels don't get to the seed bombs first!



P.S. If you know any other brides-to-be who are passionate about purple, Areej is selling round lavender tablecloths, burlap table runners with eggplant lace borders, eggplant napkins and serving table cloths, purple cut glass votives, etc., all freshly laundered and at a bargain price, here.

GOOD DAY SUNSHINE

Turning out to be a great weekend for the Wimberley Arts Fest at Blue Hole Park!